Board of Education

Welcome to the Meeting!

The Cazenovia Central School District Board of Education welcomes residents, staff and students to its meetings. We appreciate your interest in our schools.

One of the goals of the Board of Education is to conduct board business openly, soliciting and encouraging broad based involvement in the decision-making processes by the public, the staff and the students.

Board of Education decisions affect the education of our children and the-being of our community. The Board can better represent its constituents when members of the community take the time to observe the Board in action, to express opinions and to ask questions. We are pleased to have you here and hope you can join us often!

How Board Meetings are Conducted

School Board Meetings generally are held on the third Monday of each month in the Board Meeting Room located in the District Office in the Middle School. Meeting dates are listed on this website and on the school calendar.

Agenda

Copies of the agenda, which outlines the order of business for each meeting, are available to the public in the public seating area of the Board Meeting Room. It may also be found on this website the Friday before each meeting. Agenda and supporting documents are mailed to Board Members in advance of the meeting date to allow them to study and review the information.

During the business meeting it may appear as if some items are being voted upon with little or no discussion. However, this is not usually the case as some items have appeared on a previous agenda or may have been discussed at length at a special meeting or in executive session.

The usual order of business at regular business meeting is as follows:

Call to Order

Public comments

Written Communications

Educational Highlights

Information and Reports

from the Board

from the Board President

from the Superintendent

from the Assistant Superintendent

Recommended Actions

Routine Matters

Minutes of Previous Meeting

Financial Reports and Authorization

Committee on Special Education Report

New Business

Personnel Report

District Policy Matters

Other Board Concerns

Advanced Panning

Adjournment

The Board may also receive educational program and information reports on which no action is taken,

Seated with the Board of Education at the conference tables are the Superintendent of Schools and the District’s Assistant Superintendent. The Secretary to the Superintendent also serves as the District Clerk and records the minutes of the meetings.

Participating at Board Meetings

Business meetings and work sessions of the Board are open to the public but are not public meetings. However, the Board of Education provides an opportunity for input from the public at the beginning and end of each monthly meeting. During that period, community members are invited to comment on matters of concern.

The Board welcomes public participation during the public comment period. When speaking at meetings, please state your name and address and identify the organization, if any, you represent. If there are many residents who wish to speak, the presiding officer may suggest that speakers limit remarks in order to give everyone an opportunity to express concerns. The Board may need to limit the time for public participation in order to give adequate time and attention to regular business meeting agenda items.

Comments also may be made in writing to the Board of Education. Correspondence may be addressed to:

Special Sessions

In addition to its regular business meetings, the Board may hold special meetings. Special meetings are planning sessions at which the Board receives from the Superintendent of Schools reports and information regarding the management of the School District. During special sessions, Board Members have the opportunity to study and discuss specific topics in depth and to review items to be acted upon at future business meetings. Special meetings are open to the public and the public may observe deliberations but may not participate.

Executive Sessions

During the regular meeting, the board may meet in Executive Session to discuss a particular personnel matter, labor negotiations and other matters defined as confidential by the Open Meetings Law of State of New York. Sessions are closed to the public.

Public Hearings

Public Hearings often are held on issues that may lead to a public referendum. During public hearings, the Board may make a brief presentation about the issue but the primary focus of the meeting is hearing comments from the public.

Responsibilities of the Board

The Board of Education is responsible for the scope, depth and quality of education in the District. As elected officials they:

define the philosophy of the District;

set goals and objectives to achieve desired educational progress;

employ professional educators to meet the goals;

establish policies for the operation of the School District;

evaluate the effectiveness of District programs and services;

develop a budget consistent with educational needs and community resources;

communicate the needs and progress of the District to the community, educational governing boards and legislators.

No person or groups of persons acts in the name of the Board. All motions require a majority vote, four (4), before the Board can act. A Board Member is in an official capacity only during an official Board Meeting.

Questions

Community residents having questions regarding specific aspects of the schools’ programs may obtain the best information by talking directly with a student’s teacher of a Building Principal. Information on a District-wide program or a special concern may be provided by contacting the District Office Administrative Staff.

Community Forums

At various time during the school year, the District’s Superintendent and the Board of Education set aside special additional times for parents, alumni and other district residents to participate in open forums designed to gain insight and feedback from the greater school community.

What is a Board of Education?

The Board is the official policy making body of the School District. The Board is composed of seven members, elected by the District Residents, who serve three year terms of office without pay.

Superintendent of Schools

The Superintendent of Schools, selected by the Board of Education, serves as Chief Executive Officer of the School District. The Superintendent is responsible for implementing educational programs and policies adopted by the Board and day-to-day operation of the school system. The Superintendent advises the Board on all matters related to the effective management of the schools.